Hilltops prepare for Windsor
Coach and players say watching rivals in action crucial as national final nears
The Saskatoon Hilltops are on a film-footage feeding frenzy heading into their upcoming 2017 Canadian Bowl against the host Windsor AKO Fratmen.
The video viewing comes equipped with locker-room stench instead of the delightful smell of hot buttered popcorn.
Toppers head coach Tom Sargeant isn’t complaining. Siskel and Ebert, if they were still alive today, would be proud of him.
“Tonnes of film,” confirmed Sargeant. “Every night and then out here (SMF Field for practice). I betcha I’ve watched five of their games over the course of the year and I got a real sense and flavour for who they (Fratmen) are.”
Sargeant sees an athletic and well-coached Windsor team.
“They make a lot of plays,” he noted. “There’s a lot of energy around there. They’ve been around a long time and they have a belief system, as well, where there’s a strong tradition.”
The Hilltops are set to practise one last time at home today before flying out to Ontario on Friday morning. They’ll test the turf there Friday before Saturday’s national final.
Since their convincing 48-zip win over the visiting Vancouver Island Raiders in the CJFL semifinal on Oct. 29, the Hilltops took the following day off before resuming their practice and preparation last Tuesday.
They took Friday and Saturday off on the weekend but they’ve been back at it ever since with daily practices Sunday, Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday.
It won’t be for a lack of preparation should they lose Saturday.
“We like where we’re at, but we’d like to get better,” said Sargeant. “It’s Game 12. We need to come out and play our best game of the year.”
Offensive lineman Kirk Simonsen has been poring over the film with the others.
The movie roll includes a 30-7 win by the Edmonton Huskies over Windsor way back on Aug. 12.
“They’ve got a good defence, a good defensive line,” Simonsen said of the Ontario Football Conference champion Fratmen. “They’ve got some athletes. They like to blitz pretty much every play.”
The Fratmen use a lot of movement defensively to try to confuse opponents by moving personnel around.
Windsor finished with a 7-1-0 record in the regular season, outscoring opponents 327-101. The Fratmen are 9-1-0 overall.
“It’s sweet,” Simonsen said of his team’s first trip east in years.
“It’ll be kind of cool to see how they play out there. We played Ottawa (Sooners) here this year and it went pretty well; hopefully this game goes just as well.”
Hilltops quarterback Jordan Walls — who gets his first start in a Canadian Bowl game after watching from the sidelines during the previous three seasons — has found himself delving a little deeper into film.
“It’s beneficial, again, to get in there and watch and see something without coaches telling you what to see,” said Walls. “They’re not going to be on the field with you, so, if you can see something on your own, it helps you out a lot.”
The Fratmen like to blitz a lot, defensively. Walls expects to face some pressure.
“Our O -line and running backs have got that sorted out so I think they’re going to do a heck of a job like they have all year,” said Walls, who expects his team to try and get its passing game going a little more.
“It’s going to be some decent weather out there, so we should be able to throw. But, again, we’re going to be a 50-50 (passing/running) team out there. We’re going to go with what’s working.”
In any case, Walls doesn’t see a weak Windsor opponent on the big screen.
“They’re fast. They’re big. They’re physical. It’s going to be a really good football game. I think a lot of people are looking at the scores earlier in the year. I don’t really think it reflects what we’re going to see on Saturday. I expect a tight game and it will come down to the wire again.”